Hydrogen storage materials are useful in batteries, fuel cells, superconductors, and chemical reaction systems. More particularly, real time knowledge of the hydrogen content and rate of incorporation of hydrogen into the hydride forming material is essential.
Knowledge of the dynamics of hydrogen absorption and insertion into a hydride forming material is essential for both the rational design of new materials for hydrogen storage applications, and for the optimization of existing hydrogen storage materials. Moreover, knowledge of the state of charge of a hydride based hydrogen storage material is necessary for the efficient, economical operation thereof.
Additionally, the ability to rapidly determine the rate of hydrogen incorporation facilitates the examination of different material compositions to determine their utility as hydrogen storage materials and provides theoretical insight into the electronic interaction of hydrogen with the host lattice.
Direct current measurement of the resistance of metal hydrides has been used to determine the hydrogen content of hydrides ex situ. Alternating current measurements of resistance have been used to measure restructuring, e.g., phase transformations, in disordered metal alloy systems.